MOSCOW -- The Idaho men's basketball team (1-7, 0-1 BSC) battled down the stretch tell the final whistle, but Southern Utah (5-3, 2-0 BSC) was able to come out victorious, 81-75 on Saturday evening at ICCU Arena. Guard Mikey Dixon delivered one of his best performances of his D-1 career, scoring a season-high 27 points on 11 of 20 shooting from the field. 

"We allowed a couple too many transition baskets and a couple of their (Southern Utah) opportunities on the offensive glass," said head coach Zac Claus. "That was the separation in the last five minutes and a credit to them, they kept coming. There is a reason they are that good." 

Idaho fans saw Dixon's scoring spree begin in the first half, as the New Castle, Deleware native dropped 18 of his 27 points in the opening 20 minutes of action. 

"I am proud of our team today," said senior Mikey Dixon. "We fought hard, we played hard. It's the little things. We have to keep paying attention to the details but overall I think we fought hard. Credit to Southern Utah - they stayed poised." 

Three other Vandals reached double figures on the night, including Trevante Anderson (12), Ethan Kilgore (10), and Rashad Smith (10).  

Idaho began the first half with a slow start offensively, as the Thunderbirds found an early lead, 11-4. The Vandals came back to tie it at 13 all after a layup from Dixon. Southern Utah would regain the lead but the Vandals stuck around the remainder of the half to find themselves down 36-33, heading into the locker room. 

An efficient first half from the field helped Idaho stay within striking distance, as the team shot 45 percent compared to 39 percent by SUU. The Vandals were also able to turn five offensive rebounds into 16 second-chance points. 

The Vandals were able to find an offensive rhythm out of the break, as they hit the opening three baskets to take the lead, 40-37. The Idaho offense would continue to click on all cylinders, as the Vandals led 63-57 with under nine minutes to play. The six-point advantage was the largest lead for the home team. 

With the Vandals leading 65-64, the Thunderbirds sparked an 8-0 run with over six minutes to play to retake the momentum.  

Idaho trailed 77-75 with 29 seconds remaining with possession, but the Thunderbirds were able to make timely plays to come out on top, 81-75.

"We went toe-to-toe with arguably the best team in the league but I go back because we had three really good practices Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and the correlation between practice to the game is real," said Claus. "As long as our guys continue to believe in that and believe in one another then we have more good days ahead of us." 

The Vandals return to non-conference play on Wednesday when they host South Dakota State at 6 p.m.